


Rebirth and Renew

by Spoiler1001



Series: Reaper chronicles [1]
Category: Rockman X | Mega Man X, Rockman | Mega Man - All Media Types
Genre: Anger, Angst with a Happy Ending, Bromance, F/M, Gen, High teen rating though, Hunters, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, PTSD, Prostitution, Rape/Non-con Elements, Scars, Trust Issues, Violence, a rape is referenced, but not acted out as we see, but not that kind, i realize that prostitution is a tag along with "happy ending", second loves, sex and violence, shocking turn of events
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-27
Updated: 2017-04-04
Packaged: 2018-06-04 19:17:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 9
Words: 9,343
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6672118
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Spoiler1001/pseuds/Spoiler1001
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>An Au of Megaman following X6. Basically a new player joins the fight between Sigma and the hunters. What the hunters find out makes them have to decide if the want to let her have the choice. And what has she done to zero?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Also on Fanfiction.net

It's sad how the most broken people, the ones with the bleeding spirit, are the ones who can be the nicest. It's also heartbreaking how they can also be the most bitter and hating and distrustful. X and Zero are these such people. X's demons are with his enemy that keeps coming back no matter what is done to him. Zero...well Zero suffers from a broken heart. He used to be happy but years of being manipulated and used scarred and calloused him. Those two were the closest friends, despite extreme personality differences. X was a saint, always being polite and pacifistic. Zero was bitter and quick tempered. They were sleeping in recovery pods when a mission was called needing both reploids' abilities. They walked to mission control where Alia was typing anxiously. Signas was looking over screens and gritting his teeth. The overall atmosphere was tense and X and Zero almost didn't want to be there.

"I assume you are aware of how potent the Sigma virus is," Signas said as he looked at a screen. Both reploids nodded. He put the video he was watching up on the big screen it showed a young girl, late teens, early twenties at the most. The video was in black in white, but anyone could see what she was doing, and the fact that her skin was a metallic material. Whenever she touched a maverick, a light was peeking through the inner wires. When the light faded the maverick was purified, and it collapsed, but by the time it hit the ground, she had moved on to the next one. After a few minutes, the robot began to twitch and all signs of life vanished as steam crept out of it.

"Did she just...?" X muttered. Absolute shock filled his core. She was doing the impossible. She shouldn't be doing that. How was she doing that?

"The force of her anti-virus and her virus cause an electrical force that is capable of melting circuits. The anti-virus seems to only really be stronger when overtaking the virus and if it wins, that's bad news for the reploid. We need her monitored in case a maverick decided to take interest in her. We need to find her before another does" Both X and Zero nodded, accepting the mission.

"Where should we start?" Zero said, his long hair moving with his head. "I would suggest that you try major cities, that's where it'd be safest to hide," Signas answered. The two reploids nodded and left to start their mission.

* * *

The armor was taken off so it would be easier for them to blend in. X wore a long baggy blue jacket with dark blue jeans. Zero wore a red jacket with black jeans, his blond hair in a higher-than-normal ponytail. His bangs fell in front of his eyes, tampered down from days of wearing his helmet. They asked around and No one saw her or knew what they were talking about. All except one. A brunette girl of a questionable occupation, not that either of them was judging; X didn't judge what people had to do to earn a living and Zero is a frequent enough client that he'd be one of the most hypocritical people in existence if he judged. "I work with her. She goes by Nicky." The girl said. "She usually hangs out by the old houses. People love her there. It's fancy and she's one of the few good ones there" X blushed slightly at the implications.

Zero smirked at his friend's face. "Thank you for your cooperation," Zero told her. "Yeah, no problem. Just don't let her take any more of my clients." She said and walked off. Zero glared at the air as they made their way to the old houses. He could have sworn that he's seen Nicky's face before, but whenever he tried to think back, he kept having thoughts of a short bald reploid, or a tall robot with obnoxiously round hair and pointy eyebrows.

The old houses were large and made out of bricks and cement. There were singed buildings that were hollowed out from maverick attacks from years passed. Old blood was staining the sidewalk while drunk people hurled insults at X and Zero for not being there while children died. X and Zero were soon engulfed in a crowd of poverty-stricken people that seemed to be going to someplace, but with everything completely barren they had no place to go. Others were desperate parents who were clawing at them, begging for the hunters to find their children. In the crowd the hunter were overwhelmed by people and it took a while for them to see their target 

Zero saw her first. Her blond hair was pinned up in a bun and skin was a little too pale but she had freckles. She was in a small tank top on and had a scar dragging from around her left eye going down her cheek, going to her chin. He was staring. He realized that it was rude and creepy, but he had to. Zero dragged X to where she was sitting on the steps she was talking to a person in French, offering directions to a place that neither Zero nor X cared about. When the man left, she turned to face him. Zero could feel himself getting looked over and scrutinized under her gaze. He felt like this woman was scanning into his circuits. X wasn't affected by her gaze and asked her a few questions in French, and she answered them smoothly.

After a few minutes of them going back and forth, the woman looked at Zero and with very little accent, looked over at Zero and said one thing. “Don't worry golden boy, I speak English.” Zero blinked and X raised an eyebrow. “Then why didn't you tell us earlier?” X asked completely taken off guard that she could switch language flawlessly like she has speaking many languages for a long time. “Because I like speaking other languages. Now, what can I do for you two fine gentlemen?” She asked like she was reciting a practiced business line. Even her smile that switched on when she asked had looked forced and painful. Zero could have sworn that he knew this girl. Zero and X asked questions at a rapid pace, but eventually, she had to stop them, and dragged them to a diner and sat in a booth in the corner of the space and facing the door. The two joined her in the seat.

Her green eyes looked at them with intrigue as they stuttered, neither of them knew where to start. Finally, she smirked and spoke up. "And what would I do for you two fine gentlemen?" She purred out. Zero glared at her while X looked away. "We just want to know why you are attacking the mavericks and why you have that...unique ability," X mumbled, looking at a spot on the floor. She smiled mirthlessly and leaned back, her face falling into a shadow. "And you expect me to just tell you my life story?" She chuckled bitterly.

"You need to pay for that." She gave them a prize-winning smile. Both hunters’ head shot straight up. X with shock and Zero from frustration. "We don't do that," Zero said with little emotion. She looked at him and raised an eyebrow. "Of, course not. With honorable police officers like you, my services aren't required." She smiled and stood up, sarcasm dripping from her voice. Her eyes gleamed in dangerous amusement. She pulled out a tube of lipstick and put it on, the dark, bright color looking shockingly bold on her pale skin. She leaned over to Zero and left a lip mark on his cheek in a cold matching his armor. Nicky left while the two hunters were reeling from the shock.


	2. Chapter 2

The two hunters snapped back into the world. Zero’s hand covered his cheek and X ran out of the booth and out of the diner. She was lost in the crowd. The two hunters returned to HQ with teeth clenched. Zero was obsessively wiping his cheek clean. He kept wiping, but the lipstick was so thick, that all he could do was smear it around. Signas quietly watched the two grumble.

“How badly did the mission go?” Signas asked as he decided to fill out paperwork. He had been working for them long enough to know not to make a joke.

"There is a complication. She won't tell us anything until we pay her." Zero said as Alia went to grab wet wipes to help him out of his 'predicament". X chuckled nervously, and at the fact that Zero looked like a young child being cared for by his mother.

"We'll just have to pay her then," Signas said. Zero's eyes snapped up. Alia walked away, having cleaned him up sufficiently.

"She's a loose cannon; how do we know she'll be honest," Zero said, loudly enough for his refusal to be obvious. Of course, his angry glare was offset by red from him scrubbing his cheek so hard.

Signas noticed it and had to cover his mouth to subdue his chuckle. "Well then, if she lies, we'll just have to keep a close eye on her," Signas smirked at his subordinates uncomfortable looks. "However I don't think that will be the case."

"You think she'll tell us everything?" Zero asked disbelievingly.

Signas shook his head. "I think that she'll tell enough to conduct an investigation of our own," Signas answered. X and Zero nodded. They returned to the recovery pods where Zero had dreams of a lost love. The next day came too soon for him. Zero blinked awake and saw X waiting for him to wake up.

* * *

While X and Zero were sleeping, Nicky was washing her makeup off. The hair was down and knotted, due to a rough but profitable night. She decided that she'd brush it later, but at the current moment, she just wanted to sleep. However, fate had other plans. A loud boom reverberated through the worn down warehouse that she deemed safe enough for her to hide for the time being. Her entire body flashed metallic silver and her skin has a static aura to her for an instant and she haphazardly put her hair into a bun. She ran out the building to see what had caused the noise. She felt panic and anger as she realized that mavericks had tracked her down. She pulled to technological poles from her waist and snapped them together. The now assembled staff extended and plasma extended into a curve. Finally, her scythe was assembled and she began to slash at the mavericks as they shot at her and screamed in pain and fear.

* * *

Zero and X were exhausted, but they agreed to deal with a mass maverick swarm. X and Zero arrived to see carnage. The screams of pain with static infused in the air. Mavericks went flying and oil dripped everywhere. Nick was ripping into mavericks and was covered with oil. Her hair was tinged pink and her face was red and her eyes were shining against the shadow that was created by her hair falling into her face.

"My heroes!" Nicky yelled half sarcastically. Zero ignored her and focused on the last few mavericks and slashed through one of them while X blazed the two of them that were left on his end while Nicky ripped up the last one with her bare hands. "Ever the Gentleman." Nicky deadpanned. She picked up her pole and took them apart. She began to walk away from both of them. Zero chased after her and spun her so she was facing him. She was slightly shorter than him, so she had to look up at him.

"We want answers. Now." Zero half growled. Nicky never lost her composure.

"Why would I tell you anything." She said smiling softly. Zero clenched his teeth. X tried to get in between the two but to no avail. Nicky stepped closer to Zero. "I'm not going to tell you a damn thing. That must bother you." She cooed. Zero snapped and pushed her against the wall. She grunted from the impact. "Maybe if you ask nicely I'll answer one question."

Zero stepped away from her. X watched him and cautiously asked a single question. "Why are you going after mavericks?"

"Sigma hurt me so I'm hurting back. It's that simple." She said in an angry, distant voice. The two hunters snapped their heads towards her. Zero burrowed his eyebrow and was about to ask what she was talking about, but she cut him off. "Speaking of which…" She pushed the two hunters aside. She let her skin turn completely metal and jumped on the maverick. The bot stumbled back and Nicky's hand glowed the sickly green. She touched it and the circuits glowed under the metal skin. The maverick fell back. Her skin turned back to its soft pink texture. "Is that all, or do you still feel like interrogating me?" She said, putting her hand on her hip. The two hunters stayed quiet. "Well then. I'll be leaving." With that, she left. "The next time you see a maverick invasion, I'll be in the center of the shit storm." She said as she vanished into the city.


	3. Chapter 3

Later at the HQ Zero was looking at a screen without looking at any of the words on the screen. He was sitting in a public room of the headquarters and he was completely alone, After a while, his mind started to drift.  
  
"What could Sigma have done to her that would warrant a one-woman army against him." Zero said to no one in particular. Mental images flashed through his head that made him nauseous and he really wished that he hadn’t asked, too many very bad scenarios popped up and with that scar....He swallowed and shook the thought out of his head.  
  
"Maybe he didn't pay her." a nameless maverick hunter said. Zero’s head snapped up and the glare Zero gave the hunter will haunt him for the rest of his life.  
  
X walked into the room to talk to him about what should they do about Nicky. Zero barely acknowledged him. He was too busy glaring at the hunter. After a few minutes, X just snapped Zero back into reality.  
  
"We know that she has a connection to Sigma." X said.  
  
"No. We know she wants to kill him." Zero corrected. "How about you go see her tonight."  
  
"Why can't you do it?" X asked surprised.  
  
Zero laughed humorlessly. "I don't think so. We'd probably kill each other.”  
  
X nodded "That and I still want backup in case Mavericks attack."  
  
"I think she's got it covered," Zero said removing his helmet.  
  
"I think you don't want to see her," X said, smirking. "I'll admit she can still be regarded as a threat, but not enough for you to run away."  
  
"I'm not running away!" Zero snapped. "I just …. Fine I'll go." He sighed.  
  
Later that night, Nicky was talking with a client. Her hair was braided in a French braid. She was smiling, but it was a fake smile. It was one that someone would wear if they were dead inside, or ready to kill the person on the receiving end of it.  
  
X and Zero found her talking to him. Zero gritted his teeth. The idiot looked sleazy and she looked miserable. He could stop himself from running over to them with X on his heels.  
  
The guy was screaming curses and threats when Zero pulled him away from her. Nicky raised an eyebrow but didn't raise a finger to help the guy.  
  
"Don't tell me you were jealous," Nicky smirked and stood up. "What can I do for you two fine gentlemen." X looked away from her and down at the ground.

"We need to talk," X said calmly.  
  
Nicky shook her head. "I told you. You need to pay for…." She said as Zero handed her the money. She counted it and shook her head. "This is enough for five hours of my time."  
  
"That's what we need," X said looking at her.  
  
"If you really want this. I'll tell you all my little secrets." Nick smiled and lead them to the diner. She sat across from Zero and X. She ordered food and her face lit up like a bulb when it arrived.  
  
"We should start with the small questions first. What's your real name?" X asked quietly even though they were the only customers in the diner.  
  
"My name's Veronica." She said smiling. "I don't use my last name." Her smile faltered.  
  
"Wait. You said last name…" Zero said.  
  
Nicky was opening her mouth to answer when a blast went off. Her skin turned metallic and she was town against the opposite wall. Her skin was faded back to her normal pink color as she fell unconscious.

  
Zero and X picked themselves up from the remains of the diner. Shaking their heads to clear it, Zero looked around. The humans were relatively safe, having been behind the counter at the time of the blast. It smelled like melting metal and smoke. Looking around, Zero realized someone was missing.  
  
"Where's Veronica?" asked Zero with wide eyes. X's whipped around, scanning the rubble for signs of life. Picking up a faint pulse, he pointed where the ceiling collapsed. Zero sprinted to it and pulling away from the cement and bricks. He let out a breath that he didn't know he was holding. She was bruised but breathing. He gently pulled her out of the rubble. X helped hold up the rubble until she was out safely.  
  
They carried her back to HQ and laid her out on a table. All the way she was shifting and groaning the entire way and she was babbling. Her breathing was labored and her skin was halfway between metallic and normal. Zero and X were kicked out of the room to make room for the med team.


	4. Chapter 4

"What happened?!" Signas asked through clenched teeth. He was looking at the two. It had been hours since they began doing work to ensure her survival and they were all tired. X looked at the commander and sighed.

"We fucked up." X answered. Zero raised an eyebrow at the use of language, but as mentioned they were tired, but they really couldn't care about what is said because well, they fucked up.   
  
"I could have told you that." Signas snapped. "What will happen if she dies on that table?"  
  
"That won't happen." A nurse said. "Her body is mending itself."  
  
Zero narrowed his eyes. "What?"  
  
"Her body contains little microscopic machines that destroy viruses both mechanical and biological. That's what makes her skin turn into that metallic alloy." The doctor clarified. “unfortunately it also means that she had to be drugged so she would stay unconscious enough for her to treat, and her body is burning off the stuff to quickly.” Nurses were running into the room and screaming was heard. Zero and X ran in and the sight broke Zero's heart.

Veronica was screaming and thrashing on the table her skin was switching between metallic and flesh. She was tied to the table, probably to stop her from hurting herself. She had tears rolling down her eyes and she was gasping for air. Zero grabbed her hand so it would be still. He undid her bond on her wrist, rubbing the mark. She began to breath steadily as she calmed down. He pulled away slowly and she pulled out the last restraint. A moment of silence passes before she spoke.  
  
"Thanks for fishing me out of the rubble." She whispered. She looked physically exhausted. Her shoulders sagged and her eyes were dulled. Her skin was becoming translucent and she looked thin. She hobbled out of the room with the two hunters on her heels.  
  
"We still need answers." Zero said removing his helmet. His voice wasn’t harsh or angry, but she turned on her heel and looked up at him.  
  
"You don't need anything. You want answers. And I'm sure the doctors told you everything." Veronica calmly said. Her voice was tired and by had an edge to it.  Neither one of the reploids said anything. "That's what I thought. You are just using me for what i can do. You're no better than Sigma." He voice cracked at his name.   
  
She walked away from them and towards the exit. The two let her go. Guilt was overwhelming them, because she was right. they went after her because of what she can do and it may have almost gotten her killed. Sigma would have and has done the same thing.   
  
She left them and didn't look back. 

Zero requested pictures of the blast,  evidence as of who placed it. He had commandeered a private room to conduct an investigation. He replayed his memories from the explosion. He realised that she had turned her metal skin on before that blast. He could clearly see her expression change when the question about her surname came up. It appeared to him that it was a nervous reflex and they unnerved her. That made sense. He isn't the most friendly of people but she wasn't scared of him. Zero blushed at the memory of her kissing his cheek, leaving the mark. She had gone with a shade that matched his armor, and kissed his cheek, so she definitely wasn't scared of him. However she was scared of something as evidenced by her freak out. Zero had a sinking feeling that it had something to do with her freak out. He began to ask himself in he really wanted to know the answers to these questions. he realised that he was curious but would never be happy with the answer because whatever it was, destroyed her. 

The next week saw another maverick invasion. Of course with a majority of the hunters turning maverick, Zero and X were the majority of the fighting force. They tore through dozen of bases and Mavericks, but one the last one where Sigma was hiding, someone had got to it before they could. Reploid bodies littered the floor and oil was everywhere. It made the floor slippery.   
  
Zero and X heard sounds of fighting in the distance past the rubble and carnage. The two looked at each other and ran to help whoever was fighting. To their surprise she brought the fight to them.  
  
"Surprise boys!" She yelled as she was fighting Sigma with what looks like a scythe. She spun it expertly. Her hair fell out of her holders and it flowed freely. Her eyes gleamed dangerously and her skin was a steely gray. She let out a cackling laugh. "What took you so long?"  
  
"We had to work our way up." X said. Veronica chuckled, all anger from the last meeting gone from her memory.  
  
"I almost feel bad for you." She smirked. Zero slashed at Sigma and cut out an eye.  
  
Sigma yelled curses and slashed wildly at the air, slamming Zero into the wall. X went to get him and Veronica calmly sliced off his head. Sigma fell and she dropped the scythe.  
  
"Zero.." Veronica whispered, shaking him awake. She sounded worried about him and Zero didn't move for a dreaded second. it took a while, but his head snapped up, but something was wrong. His eyes were wild and angry. He was growling from deep within his chest. He lunged for Veronica, screaming.


	5. Chapter 5

X yanked her back by her shirt, and just out of Zero’s reach. Veronica yelped in surprise from getting pulled back. Zero roared in anger and ran after them as X picked her up and carried her towards a door. X opened it and locked it behind them. The room was dark and dusty, with a hint of mildew.

 “I don't like getting carried.” Veronica snapped at X. X bit back a comment for a few seconds and spoke calmly. 

 “I saved your life. Cut me some slack.” X replied as he examined the door. Zero began banging on the door. X got pulled back and thrown behind a piece of rubble, just as Zero bust through the door. Maniacal laughter echoed throughout the room and Veronica rolled her eyes.  
  
"This shit again?" She asked to herself. X raised an eyebrow and she pulled out that tube of lipstick out.

 X stared at her as she put it on. “What's that gonna do?”

 She looked up. “It's gonna save his goddamned life.”

 Veronica turned around and Zero slid to a stop and was breathing hard. His eyes were glazed and wild. He was growling at her, his fangs napping like a while animal. They stared at each other for a long second. He was looking at her with eyes of a madman. She was looking at him almost sadly, with pity. Finally he swung a hand wildly at her and she ran off in a direction away from X. X had a buster charged and aimed at Zero, just incase she needed help. Zero charged towards her, but she was too fast for him and tripped him up. He swung his fist and missed He snarled at her but she didn't seem to be two disturbed by it. In fact she seemed to smirk at it. Zero drew his sword, but surprisingly didn't swing it. He just pointed at her and stared, wide-eyed. She ran up towards him and let her skin return to a metallic silver and ducked when he threw a kick at her.   
  
"Now Zero, where are your manners? Don't you know how to treat a lady?" She whispered coyly and moved closer to Zero. Before either of them could react, she kissed Zero and a neon green light surrounded him.

 Veronica held on tight to his ponytail, keeping him in place. Zero began digging his fingers into her side. She could feel bruises forming on her side and healing just as quickly. After a while he just went limp in her arms. 

 Zero was hurting. He felt shock go through his body, entering through his lips. He could feel something pressed against him. Was a figure kissing him? Was it Iris? No, it couldn't be. She was dead, her circuits fried. Confusion entered his mind, but his mind was clearing. He cpuld feel himself meeting the same fate as Iris. When the figure pulled away, he was gasping for air, to cool off his overheated systems. Veronica gasped and collapsed to the ground. It dully accused to Zero that he wasn't dying and tears feel down his cheeks. All his deeds flashed through his mind as he was coming back to reality, but small moments slipped through his mind. He could see Veronica strapped to a table, while on her stomach, with several knives sticking out of her. Her eyes were looking at him and she was mouthing something to him, but he couldn't read lips and he was getting tired. 

Zero gasped back into his reality. His eyes fizzed for a second and he blinked and sat up. 

Veronica chuckled softly. "I guess my services are necessary after all." X went to help her up, but she held out her hand to stop him. “I'm fine, just help Zero.”

 Zero and X walked away from the battle in shock. Zero was dragging his feet, so X had to support Zero's weight for them. He was mumbling whispering apologies under his breath.

 “Zero?” X asked quietly. Zero’s eyes snapped up to look at X. His mumbling stopped. “What are you saying?”

 “...it doesn't matter…” Zero said. A beat passed before he looked like something slapped him in the face. Then a small smirk fell onto his face.  
  
"She has guts." He muttered. X looks at him and smiled.  
  
"Yeah, you can say that. But I gotta ask: what was it like?" X asked raising an eyebrow. Zero blushed and looked away from him.  
  
"It was...fine." Zero grumbled. He didn't want to say that it felt like a supernova in his chest. The rest of the walk was relatively silent. When they got to HQ X dashed Zero to the scanner room. They got there just in time for them to see the Anti virus being consumed by the Zero’s auto repair system. Zero saw the action and thought back to going maverick. He could barely remember that feeling of the kiss. Zero touched his lips and pulled away and his fingers were stained with red. She had put the lipstick on and now that would be a bitch to get off. Guilt flooded his systems. “X, I went maverick. I'm sorry. I-” He started to hyperventilate. X cut him off.  
  
"-Did absolutely nothing. She could handle you fine, and she did." X said putting his hand on Zero's shoulder.

After her fight with Zero, Veronica was smiling in her room. It was a dingy motel room where creeps hung out outside her door. She took off her tank to check her side. Any bruises she had healed. She ran her fingers over her side and she sighed. She turned around and looked in her mirror, she had three long jagged scars across her back and one going over her shoulder and ending past her collarbone. “...at least one of use is a fighter, isn't that right Zero?” She whispered to no one with tears in her eyes.   
  
At HQ Zero was going back into his recovery pod for the night. It was either that or raiding a bar or five. He was tired and wanted to just feel better. X was talking to Signas about Veronica. The way Zero was feeling was helped by the fact that X was doing this in front of him, probably just for convenience.   
  
"She's on our side." X said. "or more accurately She's on Zero's side." X smirked as Zero shot him a dirty look.  
  
"Oh really? Is that true Zero?" Signas said raising an eyebrow. Signas had heard stories of women being charmed by him and falling for him, but barely three days of contact is just ridiculous.  
  
"Shut up" was heard being yelled across the room.


	6. Chapter 6

After getting dressed and a two hour nap, Veronica was walking around the old houses drinking with some people. The people were happy and the mood was light. It was almost nice, to take a break from everything. No Johns, no mavericks, even not seeing Zero was nice. She took a shot of vodka at the thought of Zero and she felt buzzed and then nothing. She mused dryly that she was driving, at least she would, if she had a car.

 

She was walking home when she took a shortcut through an alleyway, one that she knew and took frequently. However, this time was different.

 

Sigma stood tall, well over eight feet. His blue eyes glowed in the dark. He smirked as he saw his mark, and stood in front of her. Her eyes widened and she grabbed a gun hidden under her shirt and pointed it at him straight and true.   


"How, but I-" She said in an enraged voice. Sigma grabbed her and smirked. She saw the smile and panic ran through her body. She could feel the ghost of the pain of all the pain the sigma caused her, all the pain on her legs and sides. She shot at him and the shots didn’t to anything. Sigma walked towards her, but she ducked under him, and ran, making a phone call before hand.

 

Zero hated being woken up, especially by the phone. He gritted his teeth and picked up the phone. Unfortunately he couldn't make out the words, but he got the general message and though the words were unintelligible, he could make out the tone and the voice.

 

Sigma caught her. He was holding her by the throat. He was smiling but it was predatory in nature. He pulled her closer to him.  


"Don't fear, my little reaper," Sigma whispered into her ear. She began struggling, but her metal skin failed her, leaving her at her default human form. The grip on her throat would leave marks, she knew. Her eyes turned neon green, but her powers weren't working. Instead, she gasped and became motionless. She could feel her heartbeat slow and her eyes closed.   
  
“Oh, no don’t think that you’ll get off the hook that easy.” Sigma growled and grabbed her jaw.   


Veronica sighed and closed her eyes. When she opened them, she wasn't Veronica, she was a maverick, a soldier. She gave him a blank look and and he smiled victoriously.  
  
Zero dragged a half asleep X to where he tracked the call to. Well, he didn't track he used the echo of her voice and what he could make out as background noise as a guide. Her panicked ton scared him because if she’s calling for help, things had to be bad. Of course with people screaming that there was a maverick attack her, it was easy to find where it was. The hunter in him wanted to figure out why she called and what was happening, the maverick in him wanted to destroy everything. This maverick, he realised was infected, badly if he was reacting this badly. He hoped that they weren't too late to help.

  
The two meet the maverick in an empty lot. Zero recognised the maverick as Veronica immediately. However, she was walking stiffly, like every move hurt her, no more like she was a puppet. Her hair flowed freely, coming down to her knee. Her eyes were a dark purple. She raised her scythe and swung it at Zero. Missing him completely. X snuck around behind her and grabbed her, making her drop her scythe. Her skin turned metal and she punched him in the face. She breathing was labored and she could barely stand. She let out a feral roar as she ran towards Zero. He dodge out of the way of a punch. He grabbed her am and twisted it behind her back. She snapped her neck back and slammed her head into his nose, causing it bleed. He tightened his grip against her struggling body.   
  
"Are you going to kill me? Just like you did to Iris?" She asked. "You almost did earlier today." She smirked, but her voice was cracking and raspy, like she’s been screaming for days. Zero grunted against the force that Veronica was using to fight against him. He felt bad, almost guilty. If he'd had been a little faster, she would've been alright. Her words caused his heart to drop as he tightened his grip. This caused her to grunt a little in pain.  
  
"What happened between him and Iris didn't go down like everyone thinks it did." X said. "c'mon fight this." He said holding her. She screamed and shook and her struggling lessened. Zero relaxed, thinking that the worst was over. That was a mistake. She threw herself back with the force of a freight train coming down. Zero let go in surprise. Veronica ran to where she had the scythe dropped out of her had and activated it. Zero walked towards her, and she watched him, Her dark eyes, glossing over. Her breathing  was rapid, terrified, like she was a child and they were abusers. Zero questioned why that was the comparison that was brought to mind, moreso why he felt that it was so appropriate. She gave the smallest little cough and the corner of her mouth leaked blood. Zero could taste ozone from the electricity radiating off of her.   


Zero widened his eyes and lowered his defenses. This was a dangerous mistake. He forgot how fast she was. And now she was apparently even faster. Zero barely had time to blink when she had an iron grip on his ponytail and pulled his head back against her neck. He felt heat, much two hot for it to be coming from her. He looked up to see a green light reflecting off of her. She had her scythe on his neck. She shook, her coughing raking through her body and shaking him.  
  
“Veronica,  you’re hurt.” Zero whispered his voice soft and soothing.   
  
“I’ve been hurt for years.” She growled out. “For six years, I was in hell, at night’s strapped into a table, poked prodded and in pain, screaming all night until…” More blood. “Until I couldn’t take it anymore. I know pain. T-this this is nothing. I'm a maverick now, and….” She dropped, releasing Zero and her scythe. She landed on her back and started choking on the blood. It ran down her jaw and cheeks. “...Why haven't you killed me?” Zero kneeled next to her and angled her head to the side so that the blood didn’t suffocate her.   
  
“You are not a maverick. Hurt, yes. Damaged, yes.” Zero looked down at her and moved her hair out of her eyes. They started to flicker between purple to green, then back again. She gave him a soft glare before succumbing to the stress and the excruciating pain of the infection, by passing out on the cold ground.   
  
"We need to get her to HQ." Zero said while checking her pulse and recoiled slightly from the surprisingly high temperature. She was still alive but had a tremendously, dangerously high fever. If they didn't get her medical attention immediately, she would be completely dead, cooked in her own body.


	7. Chapter 7

They placed her in an empty glass cell, and scanned her. The good news was that the nanites were fighting the maverick virus, but the bad news is that the nanites were in for a long and vicious battle, one that would cause a lot of pain. Then there was the issue with the electricity burning her internally.  
  
"He's going to pay for doing this to her." Zero said, angry. No, not angry. He was beyond anger. Furious. "I am going to rip him apart."  
  
"No you're not." Signas said looking at him. "You are going to stand guard. In case she wakes up still a maverick." Zero didn't argue. X went looking of Sigma while Zero watched her lay on her back sweat and tears causing her skin to become shiny. Her hair was spread out like a halo around her as her fever rose. Zero walked in with a cool rag to help with the fever. She subconsciously flinched when he began to dab the sweat off of her body. She let out the softest, most pathetic sound he had heard in years. Her eyes were closed and she started having spasms rip through her body. Zero tried to stay calm, but she started coughing up a little bit of blood. Zero dabbed her forehead of some more sweat, and using a different cloth, dabbed the blood off of her mouth. She groaned a little in pain and fear, before going slack against him. She opened her eyes, looking just off of him, like she didn't really seem to see him. She looked more like she was mentally somewhere in the past, where there was blood and nightmares.

Zero had to take off her jacket to prevent her from overheating and he gasped. For the first time he could see her scars. the were old enough to heal, but relatively new. He gently touched the one that ended at her collarbone. it was raised, like it never got cared for, like no one cared for her. 

"Zero…" She asked voice raspy, "Sigma, he…" She whispered before he shushed her. Zero knew that there could be many different endings to that sentence but he didn't want to hear it.  
  
"We know." He said soothingly. "you're fighting the virus as we speak." At this She sighed and closed her eyes in self-loathing.  
  
"I tried to kill you and X ." She sighed. It was a statement of fact. He looked like he was going to object, but she cut him off with a pointer look. "I did. And I'm sorry." She looked away from him. He pulled her chin up to face him. Her eyes were fogged over and she looked terrified. Zero sighed. He could picture him on that table with her next to him and her only to whisper to him.  
  
"Sigma did this to you, and you're beating this." He said and placed a chaste kiss onto her forehead. She smiled softly and he wiped the tears off her face.  
  
Zero smiled and carried her over to a small corner, before sitting down and holding her close to him. She was shivering, whether it be from the fever or from fear. He warped off his armor and pulled her into his chest. He hummed a little tune, which seemed to calm her down. Her breathing slowed and became steady, suggesting she fell asleep.  
  
Zero started playing with her hair. He kept humming and grabbed the cloth to dab off more sweat. She barely sighed, but tightened her grip on him, like it was gonna stop him from vanishing under him. She shook in her sleep.  
  
“I...won't run… anymore….” She had whispered softly. Zero’s eyes snapped towards her. She was still sleeping. But the words she had said made his stomach drop. She started shaking in his arms and a scream was building up in her throat. When she released it, it was a pitiful scream, one of pain and fear.  
  
Zero laid her down and she started screaming more and more.She began kicking and thrashing. Then came the gasping, like she was getting crushed by something. When the screaming died down, she cried, tears flowing down her cheeks. Zero tried to wipe the tears away, but more kept coming. She opened her eyes opened and they flashed a sickly green. They blazed for a few seconds before She calmed down and she fell out of her panic.  
  
“Hey, You’re ok…” Zero whispered as she sat up. She was shivering, but she smiled weakly.  
  
“Fever dreams are the worst.” She chuckled and Zero smiled back. She leaned against his chest. His core hummed under his skin. She frowned in thought.   
  
“You're cold.” She whispered.  
  
“Yeah.” Zero smiled and played with her hair.

She fell asleep nested into his chest, her fever going down, but still very there.


	8. Chapter 8

X walked into a building. It was old, with green plants growing up over walls. Carcasses had little flesh left on the skeletons. The building itself was made of rusting steel. X tentatively walked through the building, looking around. The air had a metallic taste to and he could feel himself burn hotter, the virus thing to creep into his body and his body trying to shut it down. The building was old, older than Cain, bless his soul. 

 

He looked up and saw paint on the wall that had long since faded from memory, but X could just barely make out what is was a painting of. 

 

X could could barely make out the white jagged ‘W’ signaling that this was a Wily lab. X’s breath caught in his throat. Wily was Dr Light's enemy, but he was dead, along with Light, why would Sigma be here? The possible explanations made his stomach churn. 

 

X was yanked from his thoughts as the ground cracked and gave out under him. He let out a surprised yelp, but landed on his feet. As he looked around he could see a difference in setting. 

 

This area was clean, the walls solid stainless steel, without an ounce of rust. The computers were just as technologically advanced as anything else that X sees everyday, and some of the technology was even more advanced than what he knew of. 

 

It was the smell that got him. It smelled like rubbing alcohol and bleach. X gagged. He helped out human hospitals, after really bad maverick attacks, but this smelled like a goddamned morgue. He shivered, just now realising that something was wrong. 

 

A lab like this should have security, and he just fell through the ceiling. Where was the alarms, the security? X subconsciously held his breath as he walked through the empty halls. He made the mistake of looking into a room with an open door. It was empty except for robotic workers cleaning up a surgical table with too much blood on it and a body bag that had a lump in it that was too small for an adult. One of the worker bots looked up at him and stared at him for a good minute, and went back to work. He stared at the body bag for a few minutes wonder how many children died on that table. 

 

X blinked and walked away, deeply uncomfortable with that sight. His footsteps clanged and echoed through the the empty halls. Many other doors were locked shut, with screaming on the other side. X burned the lock off,  expecting destruction on the other side. 

 

Sadly he was right. A young boy was on the other side, the meat and not his arms were burned off, leaving the bones visible. He was facing blankly ahead, but his eyes had scar tissue around them. His eye sockets were empty, and is mouth was opening and closing but his voice wasn't working. His head was at an awkward angle, giving away that his neck was broken, he wouldn't recover from this anyway. X grabbed the boy’s hand and readied his buster. The young boy didn't react except for a small relieved smile on his face. X fired a shot and ended the boy’s misery. He walked into the other room, some of the other children were already dead and lying there waiting for pickup, but others were either blind, deaf, paralyzed, mute or a combination thereof. All of them were dead within the hour.

 

He walked forward with his buster armed. His green eyes moved around uncertainly as he began to panic from the lack of activity in the entire building.  About halfway through the hallway he was walking in, X collapsed, his airway feeling like it was closing in on itself. He scanners were telling him that the virus was attacking him, but his firewalls were holding strong. He was ok, physically but the attacks left him feeling claustrophobic. 

 

When the feeling released, he stood with his legs shaking. His scanners told him that the virus had left him, but a doubt filled him, he didn't know what the virus attacked first, he could be infected, but he'd deal with that later. Right now he had to deal with Sigma. 

 

He found Sigma in a room at the end of the hall, but there dozens of doors in this room, like it was the center of a maze. The floor of the room were stained red and dark brown from humans who had the unfortunate fate of being here. Sigma was sitting in a chair with a sly grin on his face. 

 

X felt unbridled rage glare up against my skin and bit the inside of his cheek to keep calm. He was so caught up in his thoughts, he could barely tell that Sigma was addressing him. Sigma was talking about how he was building an army, one that reploids would not see coming.  X tried to focus but his head was getting dizzy, and he couldn't tell if it was from the anger or the virus. 

 

Sigma watched X, as he talked. It was obvious that X wasn't listening. Sigma could feel his virus surrounding X. He figured that X was more worried about not getting infected, well that won't be a problem for him to worry about soon enough. Sigma wondered in amusement just what would cause X to go maverick, because he's not turning because of the virus. 

 

X felt physically sick. He swallowed down bile and his head snapped up to focus on Sigma and his eyes caused Sigma to back away in fear. His eyes were sharp and glared at him, like Zero did when he first met him. Sigma could taste a ghost of the oil from Zero’s attack. The main difference was that Zero was like a hungry bobcat, aggressive and ready to spill blood. X was like a wolf, calculating and cold, judging what would kill him fast, and painfully. X walked up to him, his feet moving smoothly, like a predator, closing into his pray. Sigma drew his sword and backed away from X, knowing that the virus hadn't touched him, but knowing that X was something worse than a virus infected Gate. Sigma wondered if this was why Dr. Light put him away for so long. Maybe when this is over his partner will put him back next into the box he came in and do his own reprogramming.

  
X had enough of Sigma's bullshit. Mental images of the bodybag, Veronica screaming on the medical table and her screaming as he eyes gleamed purple as she shook in pain flashed in in his mind. He could still smell the burned flesh of the children.  With a roar, X let all of his anger and guilt out in a feral scream as he fired his buster right at Sigma. 


	9. Chapter 9

Sigma calmly walked out of the way. X’s blasts were just missing him. His eyes were unfocused and glossed over. X let out blast after blast, all of them just behind Sigma. Sigma briefly wondered if Zero taught X how to shoot.

 

X was screaming in horror. He could taste the blood of all the children, and in the blood, the dead nanites that failed to save them and were rusting in the blood stream. Tears trickled down his face as he was consumed with rage. He didn't care if the virus was overtaking him. He wanted Sigma to hurt to bleed. X screamed and shook in rage as something clicked in his entire body. X straightened as he took proper aim and fired a shot that more powerful than all for the last shots combined.

 

Sigma tried to dodge it, but X had placed two more shots with the same magnitude on either side other the blast so no matter what side of the shot Sigma picked, he would be hit, and hit hard. Sigma was so focused on trying to avoid the shot that he was hit with the first shot, thrown into the second shot, which in turn threw him into the third. He looked up from his position on the ground. The shots had torn off his armor and some of his skin. His wires and metal frame were exposed. Sigma still tried to fight X. 

X would have laughed if he was still connected to his body. He was in such a stateyes of shock that he was just numbly acting. He was covered in the blood of the children that he had to mercy kill. They had reploid nanites in their body and his systems were going crazy with the nanites in the blood on him. Sigma tried to swing a sabre a him, but X was right on him. As soon as he swung, X stomped on his arm, crushing through his arm. Red oil pooled around the wound and Sigma tried to pull at X with his other arm. X stomped on that too. Then he kneeled. 

X grabbed Sigma by his head and pulled. A snap and a sizzle later, and X held on to Sigma's head, his mouth open in a scream. X threw the head away and walked out of the room. The hallway in the room was devoid of the virus, and X didn't know what to make of that.

 

The emotional numbness evaporated when he saw the hallway. Blood was on the floor and smeared all over the walls. X covered his mouth with his hands, leaving a blood print on his cheek. More of the cleaner bots were scrubbing the rooms and the body bags were in all of the rooms X was in and all of the bags were closed, except one, the first boy. He looked clean, but he still had that peaceful smile on his face, like he was having a peaceful dream.

 

“Goddamn…. Fuck!” X screamed out of nowhere and punched the wall. His buster armed burst around his wrist, but X didn't register the pain and stared at the smoking arm. One of the cleaner bots floated up to X and examined him. A ‘W’ was engraved into the side of it. If flew away and closed the bag with the smiling boy in it.

 

X activated his teleporter and vanished without a word.

 

X refused medical treatment, at least until he saw Signas. The maverick hunter commander was shocked to see X in that state. His scanners told him that X wasn't infected, but he had human blood on him. His buster was broken, and his face was wet from tears and blood. Signas was speechless as X limped in, gasping for breath as he fought back an emotional breakdown. X was shaking and his eyes were looking through him.

 

“...I'm done. I quit.” X whispered as his systems gave out and he shut down, collapsing in Signas’ office.

 

X woke up on a medical table, unable to see anything but a bright light. His mouth was moving and he could feel the vibrations of his voice working, but he couldn't hear himself speak. Panic rose through his body and he began to scream, at least that's what it felt like.

 

He felt a hand gently run through his hair, soothing him a little bit. A head came between him and the light. Green eyes looked down at him with concern and he calmed down. Eventually he could hear sounds and he heard a woman humming a lullaby. The face gained detail and he could see who was trying to comfort him.

 

Veronica untangled her fingers from his hair and stood up. X let out a small noise of protest when she walked away, getting quiet when a doctor walked in. He flinched when Zero’s voice popped up behind him. The conversation was too long for him to really follow and the voices started to blur together. He fell back asleep.

 

He woke up in his bed. Zero was sitting in a chair just off of the bed and Veronica was sitting on the ground in a tank top with a zip up hoodie, but the hoodie was unzipped and the shoulders rest halfway between her shoulders and her elbow.

 

X sat up slowly but Zero was standing right by him to help steady him. X leaned on him to help himself to his feet. Veronica watched from the ground, her eyes never leaving him, and her expression never changing.  

 

“Are you serious about quitting?” Zero asked, breaking the silence. X just nodded and pushed himself away from Zero. He walked towards Veronica and broke down, falling to his knees and letting out sobs. Zero hugged him.

 

“X, we understand. We know about the kids. No one blames you.” Zero whispered. X grabbed Veronica’s hand and shook. He couldn't bear to know how bad it was for her there, but if those children showed anything, it was that she needed someone.

 

“You should join the hunters.” X said in between his sobs. “you'd be good for them-us.”

 

Veronica nodded. He looked like he would get worse if she said no, but it would be good for her too. She nodded again and gripped his hand.

  
“I'll join.” She promised and smiled at him.


End file.
